Makes Love to Pressure

I am personally embarrassed for the Bay Area tonight when the crowd at the Oracle did the wave late in the 4th quarter when the team needed their support.

Tonight’s game was not Stephen Jackson’s night. Tonight’s game was a microcosm of his play style when he was a high-strung Indiana player. On defense, he wasn’t able to guard Josh Howard. While on offense, he settled for jumpers and long distance 3s. When he did drive inside, he relied too much on the referee whistle and thus lost the ball, even getting T’d up at one point.

Taken by Rocky Widner (NBAE/Getty Images)

Good thing tonight, the Golden State Warriors did not need Jackson to be on his game. The other players on the team finally contributed productive minutes to the cause.

Kelenna Azubuike also contributed well, chipping in 15 points and 7 boards including a clutch five points when the Mavericks came within four late in the 4th.

The star of the game was Al Harrington. His hustle, energy, and inside play kept the team in the game early when the Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 12-0 start. As Jim Barnett said in the telecast, when Harrington is decisive with the ball, then good things happen for him and the team. Harrington finished the game with 14 points, 9 boards, and 2 block shots, all with a sprained knuckle in his shooting hand.

Other notables were Monta Ellis with 30 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds and 0 turnovers, which makes up for the ugly five he had in the previous game against the Nuggets. Andris Biedrins, even at 95%, is back to doing his thing. He protected the paint well tonight, changing a number of shots and put in a double-double of 16 points and 15 boards including an astounding 6 for 6 at the free throw line.

Although there were some nervous minutes in the game, the Mavericks team looked like a lost cause. When the players relied upon to carry the team is named Brandan Bass and Malik Allen, then you know something is wrong. Josh Howard was a beast in the beginning of the game. His fadeaway jumper was un-guardable and he hit them with regularity. But, for some reason, the Mavs decided to go away from him as the game went further along.

The reason why the Mavs lost though was going small to matchup with the Warriors. You don’t go small with the Warriors especially if your small players can’t protect the paint. With Eric Dampier out of the game, the Warriors drove into the paint at will. There were a number of times where Ellis was able to stroll down the lane for a layup with the Mavs front line watching him pass by.

With the win tonight, the Warriors have the same record as the Mavs and the Nuggets at 45-28. Unfortunately, due to head-to-head play and conference records, should the season end tonight, the Nuggets would be 7th, Mavs would be 8th and the Warriors would be on the outside looking in at 9th.

So with nine games left in the season, the Warriors will have to win one more game then either the Nuggets or the Mavs to secure a playoff birth.

Stephen Jackson’s Line:

Tags: 2007-2008 Season, Dallas Mavericks, NBA
Posted under On the Court |